Dr. Julie Schallhorn video

CAKE Talks at ASCRS 2020: The Show Must Go On, Featuring Dr. Julie Schallhorn

Dr. Schallhorn talked with Matt Young during the ASCRS 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting.

You’ve got to be resilient to roll with the punches. One year ago, we would have never thought that we’d be living in such a virtual world today, and yet here we are. The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons Annual Meeting (ASCRS 2020) is one of the first congresses to adapt to this new world . . . and of course, we are SO there.

Therefore, in departure from our normal CAKE Talks onsite, we welcome you to our first digital interview from the ASCRS 2020 Virtual Meeting. In this video, anterior segment surgeon Dr. Julie Schallhorn from San Francisco, California (USA) joins Media MICE CEO Matt Young online in Da Nang, Vietnam, to discuss the ups and downs of 2020 and more. . .

Status of the States

Now that some U.S. states are reopening, have elective procedures restarted? Dr. Schallhorn said it depends on the state: “In California where I am, they have allowed elective surgeries, but not cosmetic surgeries right now . . . and LASIK is considered to be cosmetic surgery here. So, at least to my knowledge, no one in California is doing true keratorefractive procedures. But that’s not the case in other states.”

So, which surgeries has Dr. Schallhorn performed this year? 

“We’ve been performing urgent surgeries: In the last two months I haven’t done a lot of surgery, but things like perforated corneal ulcers, patients with bilateral cataracts that really can’t see at all . . . that type of thing. And then retinal detachments and glaucoma surgery for urgent uncontrolled pressure. Our surgical volume has dropped off about 95 percent,” shared Dr. Schallhorn.

She said that across the board every service has just been totally knocked out by the coronavirus pandemic. That’s a huge revenue loss — and it’s not being made up.

Embracing Technology 

Knowledge sharing, learning and networking has continued in ophthalmology, thanks to the use of various digital technologies. As a member of the ASCRS Young Eye Surgeons (YES), Dr. Schallhorn said that younger surgeons have a slight advantage right now. 

“They’re a lot more technologically savvy in a lot of ways — the younger generation is used to conducting a large amount of their social interactions over multimedia platforms . . . it comes very naturally and they’re very comfortable with it,” she explained. “That familiarity with technology and what technology can do, and how it can be applied and tweaked, this will help drive the innovation that we need for telehealth.”

The Art of Ophthalmology Continues 

For young surgeons, the biggest concern is continuing with the greatest ophthalmic art of all: surgical skill, said Dr. Schallhorn. 

“How do you stay in touch with surgery, when you’re not in the operating room as much as you want or need to be? There is a lot of anxiety about this — and there’s a lot of different ways we’re adapting to it. I tell people it’s like riding a bike: You’re gonna be okay. You’ll feel funny for your first couple of days back and then you get right back to it.

“We’re making sure that when there are surgical cases, our residents and fellows are in the operating room, so that they’re getting exposure to the limited amount of surgery that’s going on right now. For young eye surgeons that is by far the biggest concern that they’re facing during the COVID-19 pandemic, preserving their surgical skills.”

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments